Utilizing an antenna with gain improves various aspects of a communications system's performance. Previous applications have utilized a single, high gain antenna in conjunction with a single base station in a system implementing the IEEE 802.16 standard. This configuration provides improved performance in the direction of the antenna's beam, but at the expense of the base station's coverage angle. With this type of system, multiple base stations would be required in order to cover a large angle of view while also providing high gain for improved performance.
IEEE 802.16 is a group of broadband wireless communications standards for metropolitan area networks (MANs), and is also referred to as the WirelessMAN™ specification. IEEE 802.16 specifies a wireless networking technology that provides for fixed point-to-multipoint broadband wireless systems that operate in the ten to sixty-six (10-66) GHz licensed spectrum, and provides for non-line-of-sight extensions in the two to eleven (2-11) GHz spectrum which delivers a shared data rate up to seventy (70) Mbps over distances up to approximately thirty (30) miles. Also referred to as the WiMAX standard (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access), a networked 802.16 system can provide high-speed broadband Internet access over long range wireless connections. Additionally, a WiMAX connection can also be coupled to a standard wired or wireless Local Area Network (LAN).